Marquis Allen Burned in Turnpike Truck Fire in Palm Beach, Florida

Marquis Allen was burned in a truck accident that happened on the Turnpike near Palm Beach, Florida. According to news reports, a dump truck and a semi-tractor trailer collided and then caught fire. The fire was so intense that it has caused severe damage to the roadway requiring new paving before it can be reopened. Officials expect the repairs to be completed by late this afternoon. By the time fire rescue arrived on scene around 4:47 this morning, both the semi and the dump truck were engulfed in fire. (Photo courtesy of Freddy Sarabia www.rainmantravel.com and Sun-Sentinel)

Fortunately, both drivers were able to escape the fire without losing their lives. According to one eye witness who called 911, one of the truck drivers was seen leaping from his vehicle while his legs were on fire. This person was likely Marquis Allen. The other driver was seen using a fire extinguisher to fight the blaze.

According to news reports, Marquis Allen sustained third degree burns to at least 50% of his body. As a result, he has been sent to the Burn Unit at Jackson Memorial Hospital. The other driver sustained only minor injuries.
As an injury lawyer, I can tell you that burn cases are the most painful for victims to endure. The healing process takes many months, it is riddled with many ups and downs, there is an extremely high risk of infection, and the victim is almost always subjected to numerous surgeries to graft new skin, repair scar tissue, and make cosmetic improvements.

The amount of pain a burn victim suffers is immeasurable and can never be compensated for, no matter how much money is involved.

At the same time, Marqui Allen’s family should consider hiring an aggressive injury lawyer to help them fight for his rights. While the cause of the accident is still unclear, an injury lawyer will be able to initiate an independent investigation to determine what the true cause of the accident was.

Once the fire was put out and the injured parties were transported away from the scene of the accident, police investigators began their work. This process starts by securing the scene and preventing access to it by passersby and other unauthorized persons.

Once secure, investigators begin to map out the scene, take photographs, and collect physical evidence. This includes any relevant debris, gouging in the roadway (which in this case seems severe), tire tread, points of initial contact, and points of final rest for the vehicles.

By analyzing all the information and evidence collected, crash investigators are able to reconstruct the accident and extrapolate what happened.

One of the most important sources of information about this truck accident will come from eye witnesses. As is almost always the case in truck accidents like this one, eye witnesses will usually pull over to render help as good Samaritans. When police arrive on scene, they will certainly be questioned about what they saw, if anything.

Another good source of eye witness information comes from 911 recordings. If I was the injury lawyer retained to represent Marquis Allen, one of the first things I would do is order the 911 tapes.

Once the investigation into this matter is complete, an injury lawyer will be able to determine who is at fault. When it comes to car accidents, it is not uncommon for one party to be at fault or both parties to be at fault. Depending on what the evidence shows will depend on whether or not one person or the other is held responsible.

From there, an injury lawyer will then build a case based on the damages suffered by his/her client. In the case of Marquis Allen, it is clear that his injuries are extremely serious and will cause him irreparable pain and suffering.

For that reason, insurance companies can be expected to pay policy limits for his injuries. Since both parties were driving commercial vehicles, the ability to recover a substantial reward from insurance companies and the corporations they are insuring is very likely.

For all of the above mentioned reasons, it is EXTREMELY important for Marquis Allen’s family to hire an injury lawyer as soon as possible.

Putting all the legal mumbo-jumbo aside, I really hope Marquis has a speedy a recovery and returns home to his family as soon as possible.